Nerima Ghoul
by Maltrazz
Summary: Rivals. They fought almost constantly, but were always there for each other when the need was great enough. However, when it is discovered that one of them is not even human, but rather a Ghoul, (a secret kept by medicine given to him by his mother since birth,) they will need each other more then ever before, as they search for a cure and protect innocents, both Human and Ghoul.
1. Secret

**Nerima Ghoul**

 **AN:** So… New story, anyone? I know lots of people are waiting for more of Matchmaking and ENL, but I recently started reading Tokyo Ghoul, and felt this had to be done, especially since there were no other stories for this crossover.

Without further ado, enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 1: Secret

Hunger gnawed at his gut, made all the worse by the knowledge of the food in his pack. Yet, he knew he couldn't eat any of it, the illness that had plagued him since birth saw to that, and the medicine he'd brought with him had run out a week ago.

One foot in front of the other. He knew there was more medicine at his home, his mother always made sure to have plenty of it stockpiled. He had no one to blame but himself for not bringing enough on his travels. He just had to make it home…

But where was his home? No, where was _he_? He hunger was making it hard to think. The thoughts that did spring up made no sense. The thought of the food he had with him repulsed him. The people that passed him smelled delicious. He had felt this way before, when he went too long without his medicine. He just had to make it home. He had to-

"Hey, you alright?"

He turned to the voice, to see a familiar face. Of course it would be _him_ , even if it was 'her', at the moment. His biggest rival, the one who would always make the low points of his life even worse; Ranma Saotome.

"Seriously, Ryoga. You okay? You're starting ta worry me." Ranma asked. Before the Lost Boy could reply verbally, his stomach growled in hunger. "Ha! What, ya run out of food? Come on, the Tendo's place ain't far. I'm sure Kasumi'll be happy ta-"

"Not food…" Ryoga grunted out as he stumbled forward. "Home… my medicine…"

"Medicine!?" Ranma repeated in surprise. Moving forward to help support her unstable rival, she began to help Ryoga forward. "You'll have ta tell me about that later. For now, let's get ya back ta your house."

Part of Ryoga wanted to shove Ranma away, despising himself for showing weakness in front of his rival, but the hunger gnawing at him prevent such an act. As much as he hated it, he knew Ranma was his best bet for getting home as fast as possible.

As they traveled, Ryoga's hunger only got worse. His body felt weaker with each step. But the worst part was the smell. The scent of the soft, yet muscular flesh of the redhead that was half-carrying him, covered in a sheen of salty sweat, set his mouth salivating. It made him feel like some sort of horrible pervert, made even worse by the knowledge that it was Ranma he was thinking about.

"Why the Hell… do you have to be… a girl right now?" Ryoga muttered to himself. If Ranma had at least been male, he could have tried to ignore it like any other passerby. However, having her busty cursed form pressed against him made that difficult. Although it did help distract him from his hunger, such thoughts were almost as bad, in his mind.

"You can blame that old lady who's always wetting down her sidewalk." Ranma replied, thinking he had been actually asking her. "I dunno why I never notice her, but it's annoying as Hell." Shifting her grip, she went on. "I'll just change back when we reach your place. Hm? Your eyes are starting ta look weird. Is that part of what ya need the medicine for?"

"Eyes…? I don't… know. This is the longest I've gone… without my medicine." Ryoga struggled to say.

"Huh, well don't worry. We're almost there." Ranma reassured him, as the Hibiki residence came into view.

Seeing his home, and knowing more of his medicine was inside, gave Ryoga a burst of strength. As they entered, Ryoga said, "My room… it's there…"

Ranma nodded, before helping him up the stairs and to his room, saying, "Don't worry, I know where it is from when I was 'Yoiko', remember?"

Ryoga growled at the reminder, but rushed over to his dresser rather than argue. Opening the top drawer revealed packages of what looked like cubes of brown sugar. Grabbing one, he started to open it, only to freeze as he caught sight of his reflection in the mirror that was hung over the dresser.

His complexion was pale, as expect of one who hadn't eaten in days, but it was his eyes that caught him off guard. The whites of the sclera had turned pitch black, and his irises had become blood red.

"That's what I was talking about. You're medicine gonna fix that?"

Glancing at the redhead's reflection, Ryoga grunted out, "Don't know. Never happened… before." Ripping open the package in his hands, Ryoga quickly shoved several of the cubes in his mouth, grabbing a canteen off his pack to wash them down. As relief flowed through him, he glanced back at the mirror, glad to see his eyes returning to their usual ordinary brown.

"Well, that's good." Ranma said with a grin, as she noticed the change herself. "If I needed ta take ya ta Tofu's clinic after this, I might've had ta pull a Nabiki, and start charging ya!"

"Saotome…!" Ryoga started, intending to snap at Ranma, but he stopped himself. In a quiet voice he finished, "…thanks."

"Eh, it was nothing. Besides, you're the only one who can give me a decent fight, y'know?" Ranma replied, before asking, "So, uh, how long have ya needed that medicine?"

"Ever since I was born, it's some sort of genetic issue." Ryoga replied, as he began putting more packets of the medicine into his pack. Noticing Ranma's guilty expression in the mirror, Ryoga scowled at her and said, "If you start holding back against me because of this, I'll kick your ass twice as hard, got it? As long as I take this medicine, I'm perfectly fine."

Before Ranma could reply, they were interrupted by a scream from below the floor below them. "Come ta think of it, the front door was unlocked when we got here!" Ranma said, as they rushed out of the room, and down the stairs.

Ryoga swore under his breath. His family always made sure to lock up when they left, since they never knew how long it would be before any of them got back. He never would have missed something like that, if not for the condition he had been in.

They got to the bottom of the stairs, and looked around for any clue as to where the scream came from. Almost immediately, they noticed red stains on the floor, where something had been dragged into the kitchen. Exchanging a glance, they followed the trail of what was obviously blood, and Ryoga slowly opened the door to the kitchen.

Lying on the floor was the body of a middle-aged man in a business suit, his head caved in with blood pooling beneath the wound. Standing behind the body was a woman, washing something at the kitchen sink. At the sound of the door opening, the woman twisted to look over her shoulder at them, surprise widening her eyes… eyes that had the same red and black coloring that Ryoga's had only moments earlier.

Any questions Ranma had about that similarity were answered by Ryoga's startled exclamation. "M-Mom!? What's going on?"

"Oh dear, I didn't realize you were home, Ryoga." Mrs. Hibiki replied. As she turned to face the pair of teens, it revealed the meat cleaver she had been preparing at the sink. Sighing, she went on with a shake of her head. "I told your father you needed to learn the truth before something like this happened."

"What do you mean, Mom?" Ryoga asked. Glancing between the corpse and the blade in his mother's hand, he went on. "Why is there a dead guy here, and why are you holding that?"

"Well, the knife's because my _kagune_ isn't suited for slicing things." Ryoga's mother explained calmly. "The meat on the floor is for making more medicine, of course. We Ghouls can't survive without consuming human flesh, after all."

A look of horror spread across Ryoga's face, as he pressed a hand to his mouth in an effort to resist the urge to vomit. Ranma stepped forward to support him, remembering the condition he had been in earlier. Turning to Ryoga's mother with a frown, she said, "If that's a joke, it was in really poor taste. And what the Hell's a _kagune_ , anyway?"

"Actually, humans don't taste poor at all, if you ask me." Mrs. Hibiki replied with a grin. "And as for _kagune_ , they are a Ghoul's 'claws'… why don't I show you mine, little human?"

Without any other warning, Ranma saw a flash of red, before a searing pain blossomed in her gut. Gritting her teeth in an effort to clear the sudden blurriness from her vision, Ranma saw a quartet of crystalline red tentacles curving out from behind the back of the grinning woman in front of her. Following the tendrils, the redhead's eyes widened as she saw them piercing through her stomach.

"Ran… ma?" Ryoga stammered, as he saw his rival's blood start to flow. As Ranma fell to her knees, Ryoga whirled back to face his mother, and cried out, "Mom, stop! That's Ranma!"

"Sorry, Ryoga, but it's too dangerous to let a human live after they find out about us," his mother said. "Don't worry, though. I'll make you an extra special dinner out of her."

"Damn… it…" The words slid from Ranma's lips, as her body went limp, held up only by the _kagune_ that still impaled her.

"Hmm, I suppose there's no reason to make her suffer more than necessary," Mrs. Hibiki said. Withdrawing one of the tendrils from Ranma's abdomen, she raised it up, aiming the point at the martial artist's throat. "Time to end this."

Time seemed to freeze for Ryoga. That day had been one of the worst in his life. Suffering from the moment he awoke. One horrific shock after another. And now Ranma, the one he had worked and struggled so hard for so long to overcome, _his_ rival, was about to be stolen from him, before he could prove himself better.

As his mother's _kagune_ moved forward, Ryoga shot into motion, as well.

* * *

A steady beeping was the first thing Ranma became aware of. As she slowly regained consciousness, she also became aware of the facts that she was lying in a bed and her stomach felt incredibly sore. When she finally opened her eyes, Ranma found herself staring at the sterile white ceiling of a hospital room.

As Ranma sat up, the soreness in her gut got worse, and a quick check explained why; a line of stitches stretching across her abdomen. As soon as she saw it; the memories of what happened came back to her.

"You're finally up."

Ranma looked up to see Ryoga standing in the doorway, the shadows under his eyes and his overall haggard appearance made him look like he hadn't slept in days. "Why's it that I'm the one in the hospital, but you're the one that looks like crap?" Ranma asked. "What happened after I passed out, anyway?"

Ryoga was silent for a moment before speaking. "Ranma… my mom's dead. I… I killed her, stopping her from killing you."

Even Ranma could not come up with a response to that, letting a heavy silence hang over the room.

* * *

 **AN:** Dun dun dun! There you go. Not much to say here, on this one. For those of you who read the idea I posted to Plotforge, just know that I plan this to be slightly different from that.

How will Ryoga handle the truth about himself? What will Ranma do with the knowledge of him being a Ghoul? Find out in future chapters of Nerima Ghoul!


	2. Oath

**Nerima Ghoul**

 **AN:** Welcome back! After marathoning my way through the Tokyo Ghoul and Tokyo Ghoul Jack mangas (still need to read Tokyo Ghoul: re, though) my motivation is high, and thus you get this!

Without further ado, enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 2: Oath

"Ranma… my mom's dead. I… I killed her, stopping her from killing you."

Those words hung over the room long after Ryoga had spoken them. With Ranma unable to come up with a response, Ryoga had left the room, leaving the redhead deep in thought.

'This'll probably be one more thing Ryoga'll blame me for… 'cept this time, he may be right.' Ranma thought. 'If I hadn't been there, Ryoga wouldn't've needed ta attack his mom, and she'd still be alive. No, even with me there, I should've been able ta dodge that attack!'

Clenching her fists, Ranma's thoughts continued. 'Sure she was fast, but I know I can be faster. I'll just have ta up my training, so that never happens again! And as for Ryoga… dammit, how the Hell could I ever make up for this? He killed his own mother for me… come to think of it, why the Hell did he pick me over her?'

Ranma was pulled from her thoughts as someone entered her room. He was an elderly man, who was obviously one of the hospital's doctors, from his attire. "Ah, it's good to see you up, Saotome-san." The man said, as he introduced himself. "I am Kanou Akihiro, the new director of this hospital, and I was the doctor in charge of your surgery."

"Surgery?" Ranma repeated, remembering the scar on her stomach. Hesitantly, she asked, "Just how bad was it, Doc? It ain't gonna stop me from doing martial arts, right?"

"You were in pretty bad shape when you were first brought in. Your kidneys had been damaged, and were on the verge of failing." Dr. Kanou replied. "At first, we thought a transplant would be necessary, but your body heals at a remarkable rate. By the time the details of the transplant had been worked out, your organs were functioning properly again. In the end, all you required were some stitches and bed rest. It's quite remarkable, really." The doctor paused before musing, "A side effect of your martial arts training, perhaps?" Shaking his head, he went on. "As for said training, I would suggest you refrain from such activity at least until the stitches are removed, so that you don't tear them, but there should be no lingering side effects beyond that. If there are… do be sure to tell me immediately."

Ranma sighed in relief at hearing that. Before she could ask anything else, though, the doctor continued. "You should consider yourself lucky, the other woman brought in with you wasn't so fortunate. She passed away before help could arrive. You're lucky your friend stopped that madman before he could kill you, as well."

"Madman?" Ranma repeated in confusion, remembering what Ryoga had told her before.

"Ah, perhaps you don't remember. Don't worry, it's common for the mind to block out traumatic events." Dr. Kanou reassured her. "Your friend explained what happened when the authorities arrived. From what I understand, a strange man burst in and attacked his mother, before turning on the two of you. His mother died after a blow broke her neck, while the man died to a blow to the head. Fortunately, the situation made it a clear case of self-defense, so your friend isn't in any trouble."

"…Is that so?" Ranma muttered. 'Why didn't he just tell the truth?' Ranma wondered, before remembering something his mother had said.

" _It's too dangerous to let a human live after they find out about us."_

Ranma was determined to find out why she had been attacked. With no idea when Ryoga would be back, or where he might have gotten to, Ranma turned to the only other person present. "Hey, Doc… This might seem like a weird question, but… what are Ghouls?"

"Ghouls? If you're worried that the man who attacked you was one, than rest assured, he was human." Kanou replied. "The authorities suspected the same thing, so they had an autopsy done on him, but he lacked the _kakuhou_ that all ghouls possess. As to what Ghouls are, surely you've heard at least a bit about them on the news?"

Rubbing the back of her head awkwardly, Ranma said, "Sorry, I don't really watch much TV. What's the kaku-thing you mentioned?"

"Hmm, well, I'd hardly call myself an expert on Ghouls, but I do know a few things. For example, Ghouls are not undead humans, as some rumors once suggested, but rather another species." The doctor explained. "On the outside, they often appear as humans, but on the inside they are different in several ways. One is the _kakuhou_ , an extra organ that stores RC cells."

"RC cells?"

Kanou elaborated, "The average healthy human has an RC level of about 200-500, while a Ghoul has about a 1000-8000 RC level. When they eat a human Ghouls add the human's RC cells to their own, and their physical abilities increase with their RC level."

Ranma shifted uncomfortably at hearing that. "So, they eat people just ta get stronger?" She asked.

"Yes and no. While it certainly does make them stronger, Ghouls' bodies are incapable of digesting fruits, vegetables, grains, or any protein or dairy without RC cells present in it. And since those cells don't appear in any known organisms besides Ghouls and Humans, it makes us natural prey for them."

"Oh… I guess that makes since." Ranma paused for a second, before asking, "So, what if a Ghoul and a Human had a kid together, would they be able ta eat normal food?"

Dr. Kanou raised an eyebrow at that, but replied. "Since it is two different species, producing a child is unlikely, but it could be possible, given how similar we are to them. That said, I have never heard of a half-breed, and it would likely be impossible for other reasons. Ghouls bodies have evolved to feed off humans, so if the mother were a ghoul, the child would likely absorbed by her body thinking it was food, and it the mother were human, the child would either starve, or kill the mother." Glancing at the clock, Kanou stood up as he said, "Well, I'm afraid I have other patients to check up on. If you still wish to know more about Ghouls, I would suggest watching the news, or contacting the CCG."

"What's the CCG?" Ranma asked.

Pausing at the door, Kanou answered that last question. "The 'Commission of Counter Ghoul', or CCG, is the agency that investigates and hunts down Ghouls for the good of humanity. After all, how could we share a world with beings that feed on humans?"

As he left, Ranma found herself with some answers, but even more to think about.

* * *

Two days later found Ranma leaving the hospital, glad to have the stitches removed, and to be male once more. And even better, he had a plan. "I just hope he hasn't gotten lost again…" Ranma muttered, as he began the trek back through Nerima.

However, Ranma had a detour to take on the way. When he got directions back to the Tendo Dojo before leaving the hospital, Ranma discovered that the Hibiki residence was along the route back. He needed to talk to Ryoga, and that seemed as good a place to start looking as any.

When he arrived, Ranma was glad that he had decided to check there first, as the lights were on. He went up and knocked on the door, and a few moments later, it was opened by his rival.

"…Oh, it's you." Ryoga said dismally, before turning and walking back inside.

Ranma frowned at the lackluster greeting. Given recent events, however, he could understand the depressed aura surrounding the Lost Boy. As he followed Ryoga inside, though, Ranma noticed something odd, and asked about it. "What's with all the boxes?"

"I'm packing everything up." Ryoga replied. "There's no point in keeping the house just for myself, especially with how rarely I make it back here. Besides, I'm used to sleeping in a tent, and the extra yen might help with the next catastrophe in my life."

"Wait, what about your dad?"

Ryoga just shrugged, "I haven't heard from dad for almost 3 years. The last time we talked was when you were pretending to be Yoiko.

"Oh." As the Lost Boy resumed packing, Ranma asked, "So, what are ya gonna do now?"

That caused Ryoga to pause, before continuing to pack, as he said, "She was my mom, but we weren't as close as most families. I guess I'll just keep travelling and training." Glancing at his rival, he asked, "Why do you care, Ranma?"

Ranma opened his mouth to give a sarcastic reply, but stopped himself. He needed a serious answer. "Ryoga… how long will that remaining medicine last ya?"

Ryoga's movements came to a halt at that. In a quiet voice, he replied, "About three months. Four, if I ration it."

"Damn, that's it?" Ranma ran a hand through his hair in frustration. "Then, what d'ya plan ta do when ya run out then?"

"…I'll deal with that when it happens." Ryoga said stubbornly.

"And what, just start killing and eating people?" Ranma shot back. "Sorry pal, but I can't let ya do that."

Jumping to his feet, Ryoga glared at the pigtailed teen as he yelled, "Then what do you think I should do, starve to death!?"

However, Ranma just grinned, as he said, "Of course not! We'll just have ta find a solution before then."

"A solution?" Ryoga asked, as he calmed down a bit in his confusion. "And what do you mean, 'we'?"

"A cure, something else ya can eat, a new medicine that'll let ya eat normal food, something like that." Ranma explained. "And as for the 'we'…" The grin fell from Ranma's face as he continued, "If I hadn't been there, or had dodged your mom's attack, she'd still be alive, and ya would have plenty of medicine. I… can't do anything about your mom, so the least I can do is help ya find a replacement for the medicine. Besides, a martial artist duty is ta protect the weak, right? So, I figure that includes finding ya something ta eat besides people."

Ryoga just stared at him for a moment before asking, "Are you serious, Ranma?"

"Yeah, I had a lotta time ta think about it in the hospital: I swear on my honor as a martial artist, that I'll help you find a way ta live without harming innocents." Ranma said solemnly, before grinning once more. "Besides, I'm 18 now, and just graduated from Furinkan, so I could use a reason ta leave Nerima before Pop and Tendo-san do something stupid again."

"That's great, but where do we even start?" Ryoga asked.

"About that," Ranma said, grinning even wider as she pulled a flyer out of her pocket, "I have a plan."

Taking the flyer, Ryoga looked over it in confusion. "'Join the CCG Academy. Become a Ghoul Investigator, and help protect humanity against the flesh-eating monsters known as Ghouls, or learn to support the Investigators in their noble quest to preserve our safety.' So, these people hunt Ghouls? How does that help us?"

"Well, one of the doctors at the hospital knew a bit about Ghouls, and told me about them." Ranma replied. "The way I see it, they're our best bet ta find a cure, since they've apparently got a huge research department behind them." Suddenly, Ranma's tone turn serious. "And if all else fails, and you need… _meat_ , then I doubt they'd count as 'weak', and there are probably more than a few there that aren't 'innocent'."

"So, we hunt the Ghoul hunters?"

"Well, I say we check them out more first. Better ta find a cure or medicine, instead. If I enter their Academy as a prospective Ghoul Investigator, I can learn more about them, and if I actually graduate, I can help make sure they never come after you." Ranma quickly became more enthusiastic, as he explained his plan.

"That… actually sounds like a good plan, or at least a start of one." Ryoga replied. "We better get started then."

* * *

 **AN:** And there you go! As I mentioned to a couple reviewers, I put Ranma in a similar situation to Kaneki in order to better outline the difference between the two. For example, Ranma heals MUCH faster than ordinary people, so no organ transplant was necessary. Thus, Ranma is still fully human. I just wanted to make sure everyone understood this.

The plan is made, the course is set… and the best is yet to come!

Will Ranma's plan succeed? Will they have enough time before Ryoga's medicine runs out? What happened to Ryoga's father? Find out in future chapters of Nerima Ghoul!


End file.
